Optimal distribution protection design considering momentary and sustained reliability indices

Today momentary interruptions are an important customer issue and most distribution engineers consider them a reliability issue. This paper considers reliability as all aspects of customer interruptions, including momentary interruptions. A methodology for multiobjective optimization is proposed to minimize SAIFI, SAIDI and MAIFI_E indices simultaneously. This goal is achieved considering both the optimized allocation of protective devices and switches, and the definition of the protection scheme to be employed in the reclosers and substation breaker, fuse saving or fuse blowing. The constraints considered include technical and economic limitations. In the search for the better solutions is employed the Nondominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm - II. The methodology was tested in a real distribution system with 51 buses, and the results compared with the current configuration of the protection system.